A 21-year-old aspiring politician with a range of disabilities dreams of going to university but said he is finding it incredibly difficult to find a college to complete his A-levels.

Milford man Lewis Curtis, who struggles with cerebral palsy, autism and dyslexia, is a wheelchair user and is unable to read or write.

Nevertheless, he said he hopes to one day become an MP as he believes “the world can change for the better”. As a member of the Labour Party , he has stood for local election three times.

Mr Curtis was unable to complete his A-level studies at Godalming College, and on June 29 he was sent a letter by education authority Surrey County Council (SCC) informing him that it could not fund his placement at special needs college Treloar’s.

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Disability issues in Surrey

The letter, seen by Surrey Live, suggests Mr Curtis’s placement would be very costly and advises him seek help from adult services and mental health support so that he can re-enrol into mainstream colleges or look into home-based learning.

Mr Curtis said he was disappointed by the rejection: “I’m stuck at home for a year now. I feel it’s really stressful.”

Mother Nicola Carr said: “He wants to go to university, he wants to be an MP, but he’s very frustrated because he can’t read and write.

Mum Nicola Carr with son Lewis Curtis (Image: Darren Pepe)

“It’s not like he doesn’t want to. He’s had every test done. He’s had people come out with different types of keyboards.

“For a 21-year-old to hear your life is over, it’s ridiculous. If he was able bodied he would go wherever he decided, work his way up like most people his age. He’s 21, he should be in university now.

“Treloar’s is the only option. They cater to people with cerebral palsy, they cater to people like this on a daily basis.”

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A SCC spokesman responded: "We're keen to help Lewis reach his full potential and are currently exploring how best to support him and his family with a range of services that will allow him to succeed in his education."

Miss Carr said her son was showing signs of mental health issues last year, and left Godalming College around Easter time.

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She said: “He was not getting the right level of support and struggled. We’ve got through the process - seen the psychosis team, the mental health team. They said there was nothing wrong with him, saying ‘It’s just stress, he just needs to get on with education'.

“The letter says he needs to go to mainstream college, we’ve done that. We tried Guildford College before Godalming.”